Studies on Impact of Weather Parameters on Total Soluble Solids (TSS) Content of Mango Crop in Raipur District, India

Abstract

The present study was carried out at the Department of Agricultural Meteorology, College of Agriculture, Indira Gandhi Krishi Vishwavidyalaya (IGKV), Raipur. The relationships between meteorological variables and total soluble solids (TSS) in mango were examined using MS Excel and Weather Cock software. Daily meteorological data spanning four years (2019–2022) were obtained from the Department of Agricultural Meteorology, IGKV, Raipur. Corresponding data on fruit production and TSS for the same period were collected from 15–20-year-old trees of five mango cultivars, namely ‘Dashehari’, ‘Langra’, ‘Mallika’, ‘Amrapali’, and ‘Chhattisgarh Nandiraj’, maintained at the Horticulture Farm, Department of Fruit Science, College of Agriculture, IGKV, Raipur. Correlation coefficients were computed to quantify the associations between the meteorological variables and TSS. Analysis of the daily weather and TSS data showed that Langra, Amrapali, and Chhattisgarh Nandiraj had higher sugar levels under warmer conditions, with positive correlation coefficients ranging from 0.96* to 1.00**, whereas Dashehari and Mallika were more sensitive to temperature-related stress, with negative correlations ranging from −0.97* to −1.00**. Maximum temperatures above threshold values may decrease TSS because of increased respiration and water loss, and cultivar-specific differences in sugar metabolism were also evident. Minimum temperature (Tmin) generally showed a positive correlation with TSS during the mid-stage (0.99** in Amrapali) and negative correlations during the early and late stages (−0.97* and −0.98*). This indicates that higher minimum temperatures favour sugar accumulation up to the mid-stage, although the relationship varied among cultivars and was probably influenced by other factors. The relationship between TSS and rainfall was inconsistent across cultivars. Significant positive correlations in Dashehari and Mallika (r = 0.96** to 1.00**) may reflect the benefits of improved hydration, photosynthesis, and cell expansion under moderate RH-I, whereas negative correlations in Chhattisgarh Nandiraj and Langra (r = −0.97** to −1.00**) suggest vulnerability to pathogens, pollination failure, sugar dilution, or inhibited ripening when morning relative humidity (RH-I) exceeds optimal levels. Dashehari and Chhattisgarh Nandiraj showed positive correlations between wind speed and TSS during some early and mid-stage weeks, whereas Langra, Mallika, and Amrapali showed strong negative correlations when wind speed exceeded their apparent tolerance limits. Overall, Chhattisgarh Nandiraj appeared comparatively tolerant of the observed temperature regimes, while Dashehari appeared comparatively tolerant of the moisture, rainfall, and relative-humidity regimes associated with TSS accumulation.